Media Journalist Group Backs Disney In Battle With DeSantis
Disney recently faced a setback in their ongoing battle with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, when a state judge dismissed the company’s motion to dismiss a state lawsuit.
Despite this, the company is now getting a new ally in its court fight, in the form of The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. The group, which represents journalists, is now siding with Walt Disney Parks and Resorts in their federal-court fight with Ron DeSantis. Disney is arguing that the governor’s laws dissolving the Reedy Creek Improvement District were done in retaliation and violated the company’s First Amendment rights.
Photo: RCFP
Supporting Disney
The Washington-based nonprofit group filed court documents Friday, arguing that U.S. District Judge Allen Windsor should reject the state’s request to dismiss the suit.
Photo: Greg Angel/Spectrum News 13
“Here, the government conduct in question targets a public company, but if the state of Florida and its officials succeed in defending their actions against Disney in this case, governments across the country may be emboldened to take action against not only public companies, but journalists, reporters, and the greater news media when they exercise their First Amendment freedoms,” lawyers for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press wrote in one of the documents filed Friday.
How We Got Here
Following Disney’s public opposition to Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act, which detractors have labeled “Don’t Say Gay,” DeSantis pushed the Florida state legislature to dissolve Disney’s Reedy Creek Improvement District.
Ron DeSantis. Photo: Also Variety
That special district had essentially given Disney autonomy over the land in and around Walt Disney World.
Reedy Creek was eventually dissolved, and replaced by the DeSantis-appointed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD).
Photo: Also Fox Business
Disney then sued DeSantis and the CFTOD. In their suit, they argue that the dissolution of Reedy Creek and subsequent state laws were passed in retaliation for Disney speaking out.
DeSantis Asks For Dismissal
Attorneys for the state filed a motion to dismiss the case on June 26. In their motion, they argued that DeSantis and CFTOD administrators were protected from lawsuits under the 11th Amendment.
Additionally, the state characterized the dissolution of Reedy Creek as a rectification of a “sweetheart deal.”
“Local taxes? Disney set them,” the motion said. “Building and safety codes? Disney set those, too. Caps on land development? Disney made the final call. Disney could exercise eminent domain, permitting it to annex territory even outside the District’s borders, all without legislative approval. It could build and operate an airport, or even a nuclear power plant.”
Reporters Committee For Freedom Brief
In their friend-of-the-court brief, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press argued that DeSantis and other defendants were “to depart from fundamental First Amendment precedent that prohibits government retaliation against a private speaker for commentary perceived by the state as critical — as defendants have done here.”
Photo: Also Click Orlando
“This is a significant First Amendment case,” the brief said. “One of the world’s largest companies has alleged that a state openly acted to punish it for speaking out on issues of public concern. And the state has admitted as much.”
Photo: Getty Images
As always, continue to check back in with MickeyBlog. We will be updating you on all the news surrounding the ongoing battle between Ron DeSantis and the Walt Disney Company.
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